A racist tweet aimed at Liverpool’s Egyptian striker Mo Salah is being investigated by police.

The message, which included a mocked-up image of the footballer, was sent on Wednesday afternoon before being shared by others, said Merseyside Police.

The force said it was treating the incident as a hate crime.

Everton said they were investigating whether the message was sent by a Twitter user who had connections to the club.

A Merseyside Police spokesman said: “Merseyside Police is aware of an offensive tweet posted in relation to a Liverpool footballer, and shared by others, and will be investigating the matter.

“Hate crime in any guise will not be tolerated and those who use the internet to target others, and who commit a criminal offence such as hate crime in doing so, need to understand that they are not beyond the law.”

An Everton spokesman added: “Everton condemns in the strongest terms any kind of racism.

“We have shared the material with the appropriate authorities and are looking into the matter further to understand if the twitter user in question is known to the club in any way.”